The UN Environment World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC) report, titled 'ABNJ Related Ocean Activities and Examples of Institutes,’ focuses on institutional arrangements and cross-sectoral cooperation for biodiversity conservation and sustainable use in the Western Indian Ocean and the South East Pacific.
The report identifies several options for fostering regional area-based planning.
10 May 2017: The UN Environment World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC) released a publication on the governance landscape in areas beyond national jurisdiction (ABNJ). The report focuses on institutional arrangements and cross-sectoral cooperation for biodiversity conservation and sustainable use in the Western Indian Ocean and the South East Pacific, highlighting governance gaps and opportunities for strengthening cooperation towards sustainable fisheries and biodiversity conservation in ABNJ.
‘ABNJ Related Ocean Activities and Examples of Institutes’ finds that several global and regional sectoral institutions have a mandate to implement area-based management tools in ABNJ, but notes that “noticeable gaps in sectoral governance arrangements” exist in the Western Indian Ocean and the South East Pacific. For instance, neither region has an organization with a clear mandate to designate marine protected areas in ABNJ.
Neither region has an organization with a clear mandate to designate marine protected areas in ABNJ.
The publication highlights opportunities for increased cross-sectoral cooperation in ABNJ, noting that interviews with global and regional organizations underscored an interest in strengthening cooperation in both regions. The report identifies several options for fostering regional area-based planning, such as: illustrating limitations in institutional mandates through a sector approach and highlighting the benefits of jointly tackling management challenges; further developing national and regional ocean policies and inspiring more coordinated approaches among national representatives who attend global and regional meetings; and encouraging the prioritization of regional cross-sectoral area-based planning within sectoral institutions. The report also emphasizes that regional institutions without a management mandate in ABNJ can still play an advisory or coordinating role in regional area-based planning initiatives.
UNEP-WCMC prepared the publication within the framework of the Global Environment Facility (GEF) project, ‘Sustainable fisheries management and biodiversity conservation of deep-sea living marine resources and ecosystems in ABNJ’, also referred to as the ABNJ Deep Seas Project. The project is jointly implemented by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO) and UN Environment. [Publication: Governance of ABNJ for Biodiversity Conservation and Sustainable Use] [ABNJ Deep Seas project]